15 Aug 2019 - The President of the General Assembly will travel to Austria, next week, for an official trip at the invitation of the Government starting from 22 August.

Ms. María Fernanda Espinosa will be received by the President of Austria, H.E. Mr. Alexander Van der Bellen and will attend the Political Symposium European Forum Alpbach, where she will deliver remarks.

The PGA will visit the UN Headquarters in Vienna and meet the Heads of UN agencies, based in the country.

She later will arrive at the Vienna International Centre and will be greeted by the Heads of UN agencies including UNODC, Mr. Yury Fedotov, and IAEA acting Director General, Mr. Cornel Feruta.

Ms. Espinosa will hold a bilateral meeting with Mr. Fedotov, who is also the Director-General of the United Nations Office in Vienna.

The PGA will deliver remarks at a special event celebrating the 40th anniversary of the Vienna International Centre and the contributions of the Vienna Commissions to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda.

Ms. Espinosa will finish her first working day in Austria by holding separate bilateral meetings with the Executive Secretary of the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO). Mr. Lassina Zerbo, and the Director-General of the UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), Mr. Li Yong.

On Saturday 24 August, the PGA will travel to Alpbach, to take part in the European Forum. She will be accompanied by President Van der Bellen and by the country’s Federal Chancellor, H.E. Ms. Brigitte Bierlein.

In Alpbach, the PGA will hold a bilateral meeting with President Van der Bellen and will also meet the Governor of the Province of Tyrol, Mr. Guenther Platter, and the President of the European Forum Alpbach, Mr. Franz Fischler.

Ms. Espinosa will be a keynote speaker at the Political Symposium and later on, hold a bilateral meeting with the former UN Secretary-General, Mr. Ban Ki-moon.

The PGA’s delegation includes an adviser, a communications specialist and her personal assistant. All travel costs are being covered by the Government of Austria and by the PGA’s Office Trust Fund.

You can find more information on Ms. Espinosa’s global campaign against single-use plastic can find on our websitewww.un.org/pga/73